Remote working has become the new norm after the pandemic. Whether your company has allowed you to work from home or you’ve been laid off and found new work online, it’s become increasingly popular.
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It has a ton of benefits—no more traffic, lower expenses, and for the most part, less stress. But it also comes with some difficult parts that nobody ever tells you beforehand, like managing your own time, home distractions, and not being able to “get away from work”.
One of the tricky parts is figuring out how to stay active while working from home. It sounds easy, right? Get up, exercise, or go for a run, get back, get ready, and start work. But it’s not always that simple to stay healthy… Especially if you find yourself working late hours.
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Here are our best tips for fitting exercise into your daily routine when you’re a work-from-home. It can be easy to let it slide, but if you start incorporating these ideas, you’ll find that it soon becomes just a normal part of your everyday schedule!
Make a Schedule
If you’re serious about exercise, the best way to ensure you get it into your day is to treat it like it’s part of your work day. Schedule it in like you would a meeting—this can help to trick your brain into feeling like it’s an essential thing that can’t be missed!
A quick tip: try to schedule your workout for the same time every day. This way, your body, and brain start to get into the habit, making it easier day by day to stick to it.
If you’re a morning person, then it could be beneficial to work out before you get started with work. On the other hand, working out later in the afternoon or evening could help to release the stress of the day. It’s totally up to you, but schedule it!
Set Up Your Exercise Space
It can become tricky to set a working space apart from a living space when you work from home. This is why it’s such a good idea to create a dedicated workout space—somewhere you can go to leave work behind and get your mind in the zone for exercise.
It’s an excellent idea to set up a home gym with all the equipment you’re planning on using. You don’t need much—a set of dumbbells, some resistance bands, a yoga mat, and a bosu ball are enough to get a serious full-body exercise!
If you’re a fan of lifting weights and have the space, you can invest in a bench, a squat rack, and some heavy-duty weights with a barbell. In the end, it really depends on what you want to do for exercise and what space you have.
Join a Virtual Fitness Class
Can’t get to the gym? Join a virtual fitness class! You can find a ton of them online, and they come in so many different forms that you’ll definitely be able to find something to suit you. A virtual fitness class might suit those who like the group aspect of working out but struggle to get it from home.
If this sounds like something that would work for you, you might want to kit out your exercise space with a tablet on a stand and some speakers so you can get as immersive an experience as possible.
In many cases, you’ll have to pay to join a virtual class. However, you may be able to find some free classes or follow-along workouts on YouTube.
Take Active Breaks
Taking breaks is important, especially when you work from home! If you can incorporate a bit of activity into your breaks, even better. What kind of activity you choose is up to you—you can do a few pullups and pushups, knock a golf ball around a mat, or take a quick walk.
There are two ways to do this. One, you can take longer breaks—think 30 minutes or so—and get in a quick 15 to 20 minutes of exercise, like walking around the block, doing a quick jump rope session, or anything else that works for you.
Or, you can simply throw a few active movements more often during your day. For example, every time you get up to go to the bathroom, do 10 pushups. Hang a pull-up bar in a doorway and do a pull-up or two every time you walk through that door. Or do 5 squats every time you open the fridge.
Not only does this burn a few extra calories in your day, but it’s an excellent way to reframe your mind and come back to work with a clear head. Plus, it can be a fun way to actually gamify exercise, especially if you’ve got a partner who’s in on it with you.
Technology to Stay Active
Tech can be your best friend when it comes to staying on track with exercise. You no longer need instruction books and manual logs for keeping track of workouts—fitness tracking apps are convenient and easy to use, and many of them are free.
You may need to go through a few different workout apps to find one that really works for you. They’re all different, so be prepared for some experimentation. Another thing we highly recommend is a calorie-tracking app if you’re trying to lose weight with your exercise!
Conclusion
Working from home has plenty of pros… More than the cons, that’s for sure. But for those who are used to doing everything outside of the house, it can take a while to get into good routines and start really thriving working from home.
The biggest thing is having a plan. A routine, a schedule. Once you have your exercise scheduled, know what you’re going to do, and when you’re doing it, it’s much easier for it to become a natural part of your day.
Plus, regular exercise keeps your head clearer and your stress levels more manageable, which is invaluable when you’re in charge of your own time and daily schedule!
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About the Author
Jordan Fuller is a retired golfer and businessman. When he’s not on the course working on his own game or mentoring young golfers, he writes in-depth articles for his website, Golf Influence.
